cloakroom

American  

[klohk-room, -room] / ˈkloʊkˌrum, -ˌrʊm /

noun

• cloakrooms
  plural

1. a room in which outer garments, hats, umbrellas, etc., may be left temporarily, as in a club, restaurant, etc.; checkroom.

2. a room adjacent to a legislative chamber or legislative room, where legislators may leave their coats, relax, or engage in informal conversation.

3. British.

   1. a bathroom; a public restroom.

   2. a baggage room, as at a railway station, where packages and luggage may be left temporarily or checked through to one's destination.

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cloakroom British  

/ ˈkləʊkˌruːm, -ˌrʊm /

noun

1. a room in which hats, coats, luggage, etc, may be temporarily deposited

2. a euphemistic word for lavatory

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• cloakrooms
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cloakroom

First recorded in 1850–55; cloak + room

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cloakroom cloakrooms

The leader should function as a player-manager who can be trusted to deliver on the Senate floor and in the cloakroom.

From Salon ● Nov. 11, 2025

Also worth noting: Rose added a toilet and a small cloakroom basin by Thomas Crapper & Co. to add a bit of whimsy to the washroom.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2025

Mr Mills has submitted a planning application to Sheffield City Council to demolish a toilet block and another area of the building which houses a cloakroom and fire exits.

From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2024

It sure seemed like a lot of House Democrats from Michigan were running into the cloakroom on their phones Thursday afternoon.

From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2023

Mrs. Guest stuck her head back in the cloakroom and said, “I will be right outside. I want no talking and no moving about.”

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

The Hill also picked out a defined audience—political addicts who want to know what’s happening in the Senate cloakrooms at all times—and catered to its needs.

From Slate ● Feb. 1, 2024

Exposed brick walls and strange nooks like cloakrooms give a unique experience of old-fashioned architecture that doesn’t follow a cookie-cutter pattern.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 7, 2022

“We now have individuals that have breached the Capitol building,” he said, warning them to be prepared to relocate to the cloakrooms.

From New York Times ● Jan. 6, 2021

A dozen senators, from both parties, made exoduses to their respective cloakrooms.

From Slate ● Jan. 22, 2020

Already the vast and shining hall was almost empty; only at the farther wall a handful of guests clustered round the doorway, waiting to take their turn in the crowded cloakrooms.

From The Day of Days An Extravaganza by Arthur William Brown